Federal building in downtown Kansas City shut down after self-proclaimed 'terrorist' causes disturbance

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Police used a robot and a bomb-sniffing dog to search a man’s car for possible explosives after he walked into a Kansas City federal building on Friday afternoon and told authorities he was a terrorist, the Kansas City Star reported.

The suspect created a disturbance inside the Fletcher Daniels State Office Building by yelling: “Why am I on the terrorist watch list?” the Star reported.

Police ordered members of the bomb and arson squad to investigate the man’s vehicle, located in the building's parking lot, KSHB-TV reported.

A bomb and arson robot opened the trunk of the vehicle and removed a green tarp and spare tire. Around 3 p.m. ET, the robot started working on opening the driver's side door. Police found a gun in the car, and the man told authorities he had fertilizer in the trunk of his vehicle, the Star reported.

Authorities evacuated the federal building, dismissed workers for the day, and closed down nearby roads, according to KSHB-TV.

"While the individual was detained and is being questioned, there is no public safety concern and we determined no personnel inside the federal building were in harm's way," said Bridget Patton, public affairs specialist for the FBI in Kansas City, in a statement.

The Richard Bolling Federal Building was also closed for the day for precautionary reasons, according to authorities. Earlier, children in the day care center at the federal building were evacuated to a preapproved off-site location.